A Time of Thanks

This is the traditional time of year that we all look back over the last year in order to take into account what we have to be thankful for.  Most of the time for many of us, we like to look over our treasures, both little and large, to gauge just how well the year was for us.  But I would like to reflect over the next few moments at something a little different than goods and services that may have in some way improved our lives.

This has been a year of remarkable swings in the fortunes of the families that I am honored to be a part of.

The year began as any other year might.  All were filled with hope and anticipation that 2010 would be at least a little better and kinder than 2009.  However, as the time moved forward, things took a turn for the worse for my wife's family.  Their father, Lloyd Smith, was diagnosed with severe heart problems and operated on in the early days of March.  He came through the surgery without any problems, but soon after surgery, he lapsed into a state of unconsciousness that ended, sadly, on April 9.  The giant of the family had gone home.

On my side of the family, however, 2010 brought the hope of new life and the future.  On September 11, 2010, our fourth granddaughter was born to my son Josh and his wife Melissa.  What a blessed event it is to see new life ushered into our midst!  Their family, three girls along with mom and dad, have much to be thankful for.  About a month later, in mid-October, my other son, Josh's twin, welcomed into this world the first King grandson.  Again, new life brought forth new hope.

And there were the minor, almost unnoticed details that make up a bulk of the time of a man's life.  Good and bad, they constitute living and living is far better than not being at all. 

This year has been a treasure in so many ways.  Through the tragedy of the spring, I saw, and was a part, of a family drawing closer together as they bid their father farewell.  It was heart wrenching to see the sadness and grief on their faces as they lay to rest their parent.  But Lloyd would have liked the outcome.  He would have liked the fact that all came together in a celebration of his life as they remember the myriad of stories recalled during the funeral.  There was far more laughter and nostalgia during those few days of mourning than there were tears.  The fabric of the family was not torn nor was it weakened.  Rather, it was strengthened and made anew with the memory of a beloved mother and father as the centerpiece of the life of the siblings.

Through the joy of the fall, I witnessed the hope of new life.  I saw the future burn bright for young families who are the building blocks of our destiny.  The smiles of newborns are hard to resist because they dispel the darkness in one split second and somehow, the world doesn't seem such a lonely and cold place in which to live.  The hope of a future filled with promise and excitement looms before this family and life, energetic, exuberant life, charges forward.  And through it all, our spark of life is renewed and rekindled.

And then the treasure of a spouse who you do not know what you would do without comes to mind.  Joan is not only my spouse but my friend, my confidant.  She, too, gives life and energy to me and makes me understand the important things in life.  She is my heart and soul and life is simply unthinkable without her.

So as we gather around the Thanksgiving table tomorrow, regardless of whether that table is a magnificent tribute to the bounty that we have been blessed with, or whether that table is a humble offering of the love reflected in the family gathered to give thanks despite its meager contents, may we not forget to pause and give thanks for one another.  Then, in the end, but certainly not last, may we remember to give thanks to God for all His blessings large and small.  As Archbishop Fulton J Sheen once said, "Life is worth living!"   May we always live it to the fullest filled with thanks each and every day for the people in our lives who help to make us who we are. 

Happy Thanksgiving!

Oprah's Stuff

I realize that what I am about to write may evoke some anger among some who may visit this site from time to time.  My purpose is not to anger anyone but to share with you my viewpoint of the incredible Oprah giveaway that took place on last Friday's (11/20/10) show.

As usual, the audience gathered for the show in Oprah's Chicago studio not knowing that this was her annual gifting fest.  As far as the audience knew, the shows subject was to be meditation.  The adoring fans awaited for Oprah's appearance and she did not disappoint.  The audience obligingly rose to their feet amidst screams of adulation as though some great military hero had just entered the room.  She began the show by introducing the subject and then pulled the surprise.  From here on out, the audience could barely control itself.

As each prize or gift was announced, the audience once again obliged by going wild.  Both men and women jumped and clapped and screamed at the top of their lungs as the gifts were either distributed or shown to the audience.  It appeared that there was about to be a mass fainting spell at any moment.  This orgy of celebratory nonsense went on for what seemed to be hours even though the show is only an hour long with commercials.

This frenzy continued throughout the entire show.  It was amazing to me how excited the members of this audience became over these gifts.  Mind you, the gifts were not your ordinary gifts.  There was a plasma TV and expensive jewelry among other things.  But such display of hysteria over mere material gifts was beyond my understanding.

Now there may be some of you who would say to me that I might react in the same way.  Since I have never been on the receiving end of such opulent gifts, I wouldn't know how I would react.  I would hope that I would be far more restrained than Oprah's audience was.  To me, this display was bordering on the obscene.  It highlighted the notion for me that our material world has completely hijacked any notion of common sense and robbed us of the values that have made our society envied throughout the world.  I have to wonder how many of these people complained about the lavish travels of Michelle Obama to Spain complaining of her spending so much money while millions were unemployed and finding it difficult to feed their families.  I wonder, will any of these audience members sell their gifts and give the money to charities who look after the poor, the hungry, and the homeless?

All of us like to receive presents.  Its fun.  We all enjoy being on the receiving end of someone's generosity.  But what I am saying here is that this is materialism gone wild.  I am not questioning Oprah's motivation.  She may be, in fact, a very generous person.  What I am saying is that her gifts to this group of people and their resultant reaction tells me something disturbing about society as a whole.  I'm afraid that there are many of us who would react in much the same way.  Have we reached a point when materialism has become our god?  Or has the drive to obtain things always been this ferocious?

Christmas is the time when we celebrate the ultimate giver, Jesus Christ.  He gave His life so that all may live.  I wonder if the joy on display on the Oprah show as the presents were rolled out will be duplicated in the churches as we celebrate the coming of the ultimate gifter!  I rather doubt it.

A Special Day

I happen to share my life with a very special woman.  She has come to know me better than anyone else has ever known me in my lifetime.  She gives me grounding and courage to fight the daily battles that we all face as soon as the door opens to the world in the morning.

I can count on her for her wisdom and humor.  She laughs at my lame jokes and puns and is always willing to accommodate my sudden urges to go somewhere and do something on the spur of the moment. 

We laugh together and have cried together.  We are truly each other's best friends, not in the adolescent way, but in the way that gives life meaning and understanding between two people.  We look to one another for understanding and comfort.

Remarkably, we have faced numerous crises together and have always come out the better and the closer for having done so.  In her battle against breast cancer, she taught me the true meaning of the word courage.  She taught me that even though fear can run deeper than anyone might possibly imagine, you can face that fear with courage and determination that defines the word dignity.  She was determined to overcome this potential killer and did through her faith in God and confidence in the amazing medical staff that saw to her every medical need.

Today is an important day in our lives for on this day we celebrate yet another birthday.  She deserves all the happiness in the world on this day because she has brought an abundance of happiness to not only me but to her sons as well as her family and friends.  One of the greatest blessings I have experienced in my life is the blessing that God has bequeathed in allowing me to grow older with her.  Life is far richer, more interesting, and more meaningful because of her presence.  She gives of herself without a word of complaint and loves me despite all my faults.

Happy Birthday my dearest Joan.  This day is for you.  This day is a day for celebration and looking forward to our lives together in the future.  May God bless you with all the happiness you deserve on this day and may our future years together be as wonderful and enriching as the past years have been! 

November

As the last of the brilliant October days come and go, our minds turn to November.  November, that month of deepening chill and heart-warming activities. 

During this month we could possibly see the first few snowflakes of the season.  The weather's chill begins to set in permanently as the fall harvest, if not already completed, will soon be history.  Sunny skies give way more frequently to cloudy, chilled afternoons with the wind whistling through the newly-barren trees.  Trees that only a few days and weeks ago now stand as skeletons against the sky fully prepared for the frigid temperatures that may lie ahead.

Our minds also turn to the holidays, that time of year that everybody says they dread yet look forward to with great anticipation.  Thanksgiving marks the end of the month but this is not the only holiday of significance in this month.

There's Veterans Day, November 11, a day set aside to honor all those who have served their country in the armed forces.  It was on this day in 1918, on the 11th of the 11th hour that the Armistice between the allies and Germany ending WWI was signed.  It is a day of solemn remembrances and ceremonies to help us never forget the sacrifices of previous and present generations who have served the United States with honor.

With Thanksgiving we usher in the time of the year that seems particularly devoted to gatherings of friends and family.  We come together in a ritualistic sort of way to celebrate the bounty that we all enjoy.  We celebrate our personal blessings and also remember the blessing that have been bestowed upon us by Almighty God as a nation and pray that He may continue to shower us with such favors.  For some families, this holiday will be touched with sadness because of the departure of a loved one.  Perhaps an empty chair will be placed at the table to remind all of the loss but even more importantly of what that person meant to everyone who have come together.

This year, our family will remember its patriarch, Lloyd Smith.  Although he's been gone for a little over half a year, he is still thought of daily.  Each of us, as we come together as a family once more, will privately remember back to last year's observance of Thanksgiving and the time we spent with him that day.  Yes, there will be a slight feeling of melancholy this year, but more than that, I believe there will be joy in understanding what happiness he brought to us over the years and for that we shall all be thankful.

November.  Another transitional month as we bid so long to the routinely warmer days and head inside to brace ourselves against the chill of the approaching winter.  Let us all take some time daily to remember those things for which we feel most thankful.  May we remember to thank one another for the things that they have done for us and for what they mean to us.  And may we always be thankful to God for His blessings and presence in our lives.  This is truly a season for giving thanks.

Rescued!

For a few, all too brief shinning hours, the world actually seemed to come together to witness, through television pictures, 33 Chilean miners who had been trapped a little more than 2,000 feet below the surface for nearly seventy days.  It was a stunning accomplishment.  The success of the rescue happened in the way it did because for once, a multitude of nations came together to determine the best way to save the lives of the imprisoned men.

We witnessed some of the most remarkable technology the 21st century has to offer.  A space age capsule designed in large part by NASA, served as the lifeboat for the victims of the cave in.  The capsule was equipped with lighting so as to ease the fears of the miners as the device rose slowly to the surface.  It also had oxygen on board in case the men felt a need for such a thing.  Blue tooth technology was employed in order to keep in constant communication with the rescued worker as he ascended.  A liquid drink developed by NASA provided the needed calories to help the men maintain their strength during the harrowing ride to the top.  A simple, yet, I am sure, complex system was invented to lift the capsule from the floor of the chamber that housed the men for these past 70 days.  In short, the whole rescue mission was a tribute to the intelligence and creativity of man.

But there was another element at work in all of this.

Many of the miners, upon reaching the surface, either knelt to give thanks, or made the sign of the cross to symbolize their gratitude to God.  This aspect of the story cannot and must not be overlooked.  Each man seemed to have a deepened faith due to this ordeal.

The trials through which these brave souls passed could not even be imagined by you and I.  Can you really imagine what it must be like to be entombed in a small room with 33 others for 70 days not knowing whether or not you'll ever see the light of day again?  And, yet, these men have survived!   And while this accomplishment is a testament to the mind of man, it must also be seen as an act of mercy by a kind and loving God. 

In light of the success of the rescue mission, we must understand that God alone can bring good from bad.  He is the author of life and can do anything He pleases.  Nothing is impossible with God!  (cf Lk 1: 47)  All of us are heirs to His mercy not because of anything we have done to deserve it, but because of the sacrifice His Son made for us. 

Ever since the first miner came to the surface, stories of the men feeling the presence of a 34th person have circulated.  The press covering this story has chosen to either ignore it or, at best, gingerly and almost sheepishly, mentioned it as an aside.  But I am certain that these men did experience the presence of that unnamed 34th person.  I believe, as do many of them, that they experienced in a very real way the presence of Jesus Christ.

We can all learn a lesson from these men.  In their time of supreme struggle, they somehow found a way to not only survive but to maintain a healthy quality of life despite their surroundings.  Their faith increased as they realized that the only real thing they possessed was their belief in Jesus Christ as their Savior.  This belief sustained them, I am sure, through some of the bleakest moments underground.  Those first seventeen days when it was not known if they were dead or alive had to the among the darkest of days for them.  Then they were given the news that while they might be rescued after all, that rescue probably would not come until Christmas at the very earliest.  The world paused and much of it offered up prayers daily for the successful return of these men to the world.  And those prayers were answered.

"Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in Christ with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places."  (Eph 1: 3)  Thus, in the end, this whole long and drawn out trial can be seen as God creating something good from something bad.  It would have been very easy for the miners to have sunk into deep despair over their situation and I am sure they did experience moments of depression.  But they maintained their faith in God through the knowledge that God is a just and merciful God.  They also knew that the world above was praying for them.  Pope Benedict XVI sent them rosaries that he blessed and kept track of them day in and day out from the Vatican.

What we have witnessed is, indeed, a miracle.  There is no other word about it.  Man's ingenuity and creativity is a reflection of God Himself.  The men in the mine were certainly not alone in their ordeal.  Neither were those who diligently worked night and day on solving the problem by discovering solutions.  And neither are you and I.  We are, in fact, never alone.  Jesus, by His Holy Spirit, is with us always!  We, too, have the gift from God that the miners felt.  We have His Divine presence with us all the days of our lives.  And what a miracle that is!  We give thanks for the successful outcome of the disaster in Chile.  And, most importantly, we must give thanks for such a loving God!

The Political Mean Season

As we come down to the final three weeks of campaining for the mid-term elections, we have now entered into a particularly mean season.  I don't know if you have noticed it or not, but the ads are getting more and more personal and acidic in their approach.  It is the rare ad that actually tells what the candidate in question might do once they achieve the high office they are running for.  Most of the ads are bitter personal attacks on the opposing candidates themselves, their party affiliation, or their private lives and their families.  Its like watching a bunch of kindergarten kids squabble on the playground, only on a far larger scale and one of infinitely more importance.

The bottom line is that politicians, whether those in office or those seeking office, think we, the elcetorate, are stupid.  They think we'll fall for the stuff they put out, that we'll somehow believe their opponenet is apparently Hitler reincarnated.  They are quick to take shots at the opponents pasts and project that on to how they'll act in the future never once considering their own miscues and mistakes of the past.  Those candidates who are now threatened with defeat in November don't look at themselves and blame their lack of attention to their own constituency.  No!  They'd prefer to blame the republicans, the democrats, the tea partiers, or maybe even the witch doctor down the street!

I honestly do not know what the anwer is to this dilemma.  We need to elect officials who respect the public and it's wishes and opinions and not just when every election time roles around.  We need to elect politicians who have the courage to step foward and say what they stand for and what they will do and let the chips fall where they may.  We need term limits so that those who go to Washington to serve do eventually come home to once again become an ordinary citizen instead of that official who comes home to the fried chicken circuit!

I, for one, am glad to see an abundance of the voters getting involved in the process.  More people than I can remember are interested in the politics of the day.  It's just too bad that they have waited this long to become involved.  We need every last voter involved in the process.

We need politicans who are willing to work together regardless of party affiliation or political philosophy, to move this country forward in a direction that builds up, not tears down.  There is so much bitterness in public life that the best of us would never think of running for elective office because they have no desire to place themselves or their families in the line of fire.

Lastly, we must pray for guidance.  The United States is not what it once was.  That's both good and bad on many levels.  We once were a place where people from all lands could come, work hard, and achieve success through the sweat of their own brow.  It was a melting pot.  And that pot melted all those wonderful nationalities into one even greater people:  Americans!  We are no longer Americans.  We are African-Americans, Arab-Americans, Mexican-Americans, and on and on.  Keeping the homeland's culture and customs is great, but we must remember that the United States' strength has always been our unity.  We are now divided into numerous ethnical camps.  Our leaders need to foster an atmosphere where the unifitcation of a people does not threaten their individual heritage.  But as long as the mean season stays alive, unity will be a goal that is nearly impossible to attain.

Early Autumn

Every autumn I am surprisingly amazed at the gradual transition of nature from the deep greens of summer to the vibrant, alive and ever-changing colors of fall.  I remember how the trees and shrubs looked last year, but, in some way, I am once again dazzled with the vast array that mother nature presents us with year after year.  It is like a reward after enduring a season of broiling hot temperatures and humidity levels that are normally found in the tropics!

This season is no different.  On an unseasonably warm fall afternoon, Joan and I set out on an adventure to capture the early color of the annual fall colors.  We didn't have to go far.  Trees, in the process of change, dot the landscape all around our home and none of these scenes is farther than five miles away from our front door.

Deep reds, almost cranberry, dot the trunks of numerous trees as the vines that makes their home in such places begin to reflect the metamorphosis.  They stand in stark contrast to the deep green of the leaves still hanging on for dear life if only for a few more days or week or two.  Clear blue skies bring those marvelous colors out even more.

Some trees are tinged on the upper reaches of their branches with the colors that the entire plant will sport within a matter of days.  Warm, sunny days and cool, crisp nights hurry the colors to the surface of the leaves making the transition a living, breathing creature. 

I can be driving along at times and out of the corner of my eye spot some brightly colored tree or bush.  My reaction is to pull off the road immediately and take the sight in as though I will never see anything like it again.  In a way, the fact is that I won't see that same kind of image again.  Each plant, each leaf, like we human beings, is different.  Although a tree may have yellow leaves, if you look closely enough, you may notice that on that same tree, perhaps even the same branch, you will see several different shades of that very same yellow.  It is a marvel of nature how she paints her creation in such subtle and majestic ways.

As we move deeper into the season and the temperatures cool even more, the fall colors with emerge even more brightly and I won't be the only one stunned by their beauty.  It is important, I think, to take these brief visitations of color in.  They are God's gift to us and delight us year after year.  He brightens our lives with the gift of His creation and we must be good stewards of that creation for it reflects His overwhelming love for us.

So this autumn, get out, take a walk, and absorb what nature has to offer.  You won't be disappointed and may even be surprised by what happens to you as you surround yourself with the tangible evidence of God's love for the world in general, and the human race in particular.  It will relax you.  It will inspire you.   And a walk in the glory of the season may even change your life.  Whatever happens, one thing is for sure.  We live within a spectacular creation!